


It's a typical Marichat, isn't it?

by NubLittleWings



Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Aftermath, Akumatized Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir, Angst and Hurt/Comfort, Chat Blanc - Freeform, Despair, Episode: s03 Chat Blanc, F/F, F/M, Fluff and Hurt/Comfort, Gabriel is a piece of shit and this is why i love him, Lies, M/M, Madness, Not a english native speaker and i know it, Rabbit Alix Kubdel | Bunnyx, Reveal, Slow Burn, This is a messed up fic, Time Travel, Time guardian, Warren - Freeform, Why Did I Write This?, how can someone put so many tags i cant, identities revealing, lila rossi is a fucking bitch, loop in time, snitching, this is the english version of my fic
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-03-10
Updated: 2020-05-01
Packaged: 2021-03-01 02:01:25
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 12,209
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23087434
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/NubLittleWings/pseuds/NubLittleWings
Summary: It was evident the despair in her eyes, the pain of her soul and, above all, the unstoppable fear of being overcome by a situation that seemed to be under control no more than a couple of weeks ago. She took a deep breath in an attempt to compose herself and solve this cumbersome, almost insane scene."You don't seem happy to see me ... Ma-ri-ne-tte." The playful tone that came out of his lips contrasted enormously with the look full of madness in those bright blue eyes. “But don't worry, you will be. One way or another, you will be.”In front of her was that white cat, again, one whom had been so difficult to defeat. One whom she was sure had stopped.
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Alya Césaire/Nino Lahiffe, Chloé Bourgeois/Sabrina Raincomprix, Gabriel Agreste | Papillon | Hawk Moth/Nathalie Sancoeur, Max Kanté/Alix Kubdel/Lê Chiến Kim, Sabine Cheng/Tom Dupain
Comments: 11
Kudos: 111





	1. Prologue

_It seems you don’t get it, but easy, the story has a natural flow and even if you try to destroy it, all you can do is delay the... unavoidable._

Those words remained in her head as she tried to understand what was happening, after all it was the third time, she saw him and although they could still defeat him, nothing seemed to avoid that disastrous end.

_You are so naive, really, I dare to say that I am fascinated by that expression you have at this moment, is delicious. If you just stop resisting._

All she wanted was to protect the continuity of time and she was sure that a cat playing with powers superior, even for a God, was not what should happen.

_It is only a karmic fact, face it, assume it and let it be, that’s what you must do, unless you want this tragedy to become a complete massacre. With this you show me that you are not ready to be a time guardian._

_But don't worry you will be... perfect._


	2. It wasn't your fault

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Marinette is suffering the backlash of her love and she has a decision to take...

Marinette, after saying goodbye to her friends whom didn’t stop teasing her for having failed again, walked almost like an automaton to her house, she had to pretend she was as always the clumsy and tender Marinette had failed and she hadn’t witnessed the horrors of the future. Bunix's words dug deep in her mind and heart.

No, it had been seeing him, his Chat Noir crazed by pain, loneliness.

Upon arriving home, she greeted her parents as if nothing has happened, she sat on her bed with her heart hurting, she had made too many mistakes and caused the end of the world. She had witnessed more than she was able to digest and just after arriving at her house, she could see the whole picture of what had happened, she mourned.

She had become her kitty's girlfriend and caused pain. Adrien had been someone she couldn’t trust, she felt suffocated, there was no one to tell her misfortunes without being discovered, without putting everyone in danger again.

Everything seemed meaningless now.

Tikki looked sadly at her chosen one, knowing that nothing she could say would appease that desperate sense of alienation and loneliness that overwhelmed her. She approached with tenderness and a motherly air to her, caressed her black hair, hoping that she could release her pain at least a little.

"Tomorrow the sun will rise again, today let the pain come out." It was the only thing he could say.

The weather seemed to go along with the atmosphere of that room, a storm hitting Paris, with heavy rain and lightning crossing the beautiful sky of the city of love. The young woman's cry was getting louder and louder, although silenced by the noise from outside. The fear of becoming an akuma vanished at times, letting herself be carried away by the flow of what her heart needed most in these moments, she tried to let everything out ... until one of those damn butterflies approached her, she had to take a deep breath and then pulled her away . He’d always torment her, she had to accept it. There was no chance of finally freeing herself from the chains of her emotions and she chose to do what she knew best; hide her feelings in the deepest of her heart.

In the same way that she was no longer allowed to continue loving Adrien, let alone get involved with Chat Noir, she would keep distance, even more than before. It was the only way to avoid that future so ... bleak.

[...]

Adrien hugged his arms, his heart was divided at the moment, on one hand, he had received a gift from his beloved superhero, however, the sound of the storm was driving him crazy, especially because lightning always put him incredibly anxious. It reminded him of the day his mother had disappeared, the heavy atmosphere and the loneliness that surrounded him seemed he could never get rid of until Plagg came to him. Reasoning about Plagg was that he looked for him, thinking about how uncomfortable he should be, after all he was a kitten, although he was a deity, he was still a small animal with very sensitive ears.

That was what he thought, of course.

The kwami of destruction was sleeping peacefully in his garbage can, with a satisfied face, probably because he had swallowed at least 4 cans of that stinky cheese. He took it carefully and took it to bed, hoping he could close his eyes without feeling that the universe was going to be destroyed.

As an omen, while he was finally falling sleep, a huge lightning crossed his huge window, Adrien covered himself up with the sheets and hid moments before the awful sound of thunder made him feel even more helpless. A little paw approached his face at that moment and felt his body slowly relax.

"Thank you, Plagg ..." he said with a soft whisper.

The little creature had approached, sleepy, that stupid lightning had awakened him from a dream surrounded by every type of cheese imaginable. He immediately thought of his chosen one, there were times when he felt he was dealing with a small child locked in that huge prison. He regretted the boy's loneliness, especially at times like this, so he curled up on his cheek as he listened as Adrien's breathing became soft and slow. He calmed down knowing that his boy would have sweet dreams, he would protect him unless it was.

The next morning, although Adrien wished he had slept better, he and Plagg had had a relatively restful night. The thoughts of seeing Ladybug going to leave him a gift caused him a warm feeling in his chest that filled him with hope. Maybe as Chat Noir he didn't have a chance, but it definitely must mean something that she, in person, would have left —technically sneak— a gift. He smiled with conviction and joy. He had breakfast alone and went to school.

Nathalie noticed that something had to have passed so that that Adrien’s look full of melancholy disappeared, she smiled softly to herself, it had to be a good thing.

[...]

Unable to fall asleep, she had heard death metal again, it was the only way in which her body could at least let off steam in a healthy way what she felt inside. It was curious, usually rock like Jagged Stone's was the best to please her little heart, letting herself be carried away by her ballads that touched her heart and those choruses that made her dream, connect with the depths of her soul. However, today she had to take the reserved folder of the most depressing moments of her existence and rejoice, even if it was momentaneous, because no matter how much pain she had experienced before, nothing was compared to this.

Everything was reduced to a big feeling; it was _her_ fault.

When dawn came, she got ready for school, however, she was overthinking, full of guilt and confused emotions that took her forever being ready and she ended up arriving just in time her classroom. Alya seemed to notice, almost immediately, that something was wrong with her friend, she looked at her and tried to pry what was going on in her little Marinette's head. What she wasn’t expected was a series of evasive answers, false smiles and monosyllables when the questions began to become more insistent.

"I'm fine, Alya, nothing happens." She replied with a half-smile and a distant look. “I just couldn't sleep well. Or rather sleep at all.”

Alya wanted to know everything, it wasn't normal for her friend to be like that, she wanted to insist until Marinette told her everything that was going on in her head. It hurt to see her like this, and she couldn’t help but feel Marinette didn't trust her enough. They were best friends after all, weren’t they? But on the other hand, she realized that in reality, her best friend was always like that when it came to secrets, things she couldn't tell anyone else. Another stab. Marinette used to be an open book, a bad liar, someone she only need to press a bit and she began to slip the truth, but at the same time, enigmatic and with thousands of excuses, from the stupidest one to some that made her doubt that she was the same person. Alya sighed heavily, while smiling complacently, she would trust Marinette to tell her the truth, she could do it, eventually. She was sure. She had to.

Madame Bustier entered the classroom and began the lesson, the atmosphere was heavy, but nothing she couldn’t handle before, the students were distracted, focusing on the next projects of other subjects or maybe something else, adolescence was a mystery and Caline knew it. She was surprised to see Marinette so immersed in what she was explaining, because, despite being a good student with excellent grades, she used to be lost between the love she felt for Adrien and some design, this time she was strangely attentive to what she said. There was always once for everything.

“Well, it's time for us to talk about the final project. I’m not asking much.” She smiled in pleasure as her students looked at her with disappointment in their eyes. “The truth is that it’s this or another exam, like the one they have tomorrow in chemistry.” The attitude of the young changed immediately, while continuing. “Write an essay in pairs about one of the books we had read this year.”

Chloé immediately got up and complained about the huge amount of work they had had to do for the other subjects, so it was very unfair. When she was unable to soften her work a bit, she resigned and began talking to Sabrina about the holidays they had to go together, because she needed her to bring who knows how many things.

Everyone started talking about who would be a companion of whom, how they would divide the parts and everything else. Nino immediately looked at Alya in order to be able to implement her _make-Adrien-and-Mari-a-couple_ plan, so, although the ravenette begged Alya to not leave her alone with Adrien and do the work together, as always, the brunettes set out to move forward alone leaving the potential couple together. Alya subtly threw Adrien out of his post, forcing him to go to the young Franco-Asian side, the girl looked nervous, it was obvious. He smiled openly to try to calm her down.

"I know we’ll be perfect, Marinette." Said Adrien as he stretched out his hand. He noticed immediately that his friend was uncomfortable, although he wasn’t able to understand why. "We could go to your house, mine will be a little more complicated."

Classes continued, together, Marinette noted how painful the decision she had had to make after everything that had already happened. But she would never allow to see again the despair and suffering that had meant being loved for anyone else. She felt his thoughts getting darker and darker, thinking seriously and how its mere existence was negatively affecting the world. For his part, Adrien discovered how fun it was to study with Marinette, because she was very intelligent and used to find, sometimes, creative solutions, facilitating learning for both. He took his cell phone and wrote a text to Nino, in order to continue sitting next to the raven-haired girl until the term ended, at least.

Marinette, without enthusiasm, accepted her friends' decision, so that everything was as normal as possible.

Everything had to be normal, no matter how.

[...]

"God, this ... why does it have to be so difficult?" Marinette complained as she went upstairs. She felt her tears fall out of control, tiredness, frustration and pain were rotting her.

Adrien would come to her house, again, but this time it wasn’t that she really wanted to. So, the smartest thing would be to rest the two hours he would have from the window before the bright-eyed young man like emeralds arrived after his fencing training. She looked at her photos of Adrien, her wallpaper, decided to put it away. Not even because he went to see them, she just wanted her heart to stop breaking, this must be the first step. His calendar, every detail he had of him, was correctly stored away. She finally gave up. Moreover, it wasn’t as if it had been possible to be Adrien's girlfriend.

Somehow, she felt free.

There was still an hour, so she lay on the couch in his room while she waited, she could finally rest, her body demanded it. She closed her eyes and almost instantly fell asleep.

[...]

Adrien was a little late because he had to explain to Nathalie and his father that he’d go to Marinette's house because they had to work in groups. After much persistence, Gabriel, with a dry tone, replied that, it was just for today, he would have permission to work with her until eight, which would be picked up by his bodyguard, the next study sessions should be in the Agreste mansion. The boy didn’t try to refute, even he didn’t feel comfortable with the idea going with her to his house because the atmosphere might intimidate the young Dupain-Cheng, but he had no other choice.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Dupain-Cheng, I'm here to do a project with Marinette." He said politely.

Sabine smiled at the young man. Tom gave him a strong handshake.

"She's upstairs, we'll bring you snacks soon so you can focus." Said Sabine, letting him pass.

“Thank you.”

Climbing the stairs, he found his friend's house, knocked on the door, but when he didn't hear an answer, he opened and got in. Marinette's parents were too busy attending the bakery to be able to accompany him, so he went up to the attic where she had her little creative hiding place along with her room. That was how he found her sound asleep on her couch, the poor lady looked so tired.

"I'm sorry, Chat ... forgive me ..." he whispered between dreams from one moment to another.

Adrien approached, somewhat puzzled by his words, he was probably having a nightmare. Though it showed that she was suffering and even some tears escaped his eyes, the young man couldn’t help but blush at the thought of how much she care of him as a superhero, that despite his somewhat distant attitude, she really I cared.

"It wasn't your fault, don’t worry, everything will be fine." He whispered as he approached her, delicately. He touched his arm as he repeated his words. Again, and again, hoping she could at least have a better dream. She had looked so tired, he was genuinely worried, but he didn't know how to ask, especially having listened to how she avoided even answering to Alya.

He could wait.

[...]

From the warren, something strange was happening. She had felt terrible about blaming Marinette for the Chat Blanc disaster, but she was sure it was the easiest way to avoid that future without having to intervene too much in the timeline.

Bunix had been too naive.


	3. Everything is gonna be ok, isn't it?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Life isn't easy and takin care of her own decision is harder than it seems...

“You should have woken me up, Adrien.” Marinette's voice was full of shame and a little sleepy. “Please do not laugh. This ... this is too embarrassing ...”

Adrien couldn't help but giggle, Marinette was too cute, especially when she was embarrassed. Plus, she had woken up about 10 minutes after he comforted her during that horrible dream. It hadn't been that long, and at least she looked more composed than when they were at school.

“Forgive me, but I was unable to wake you up.” He said in that calm and conciliatory tone. “At least you're in a better mood than in the morning.” He put his hand on her shoulder as a reflex, she squirmed slightly at the unexpected touch from the blond boy. “You needed it…”

Those words dug deep into Marinette, he cared for her. Her promise could wait, she could love him one more day, right? She felt herself blush; she was sure the tomatoes paled in front of her face.

"Tha-thanks, Adrien." She said almost in a whisper. I look at his computer. "Well, we should do this work."

"Y-yes ..." He took a moment to meditate, to gather the courage he needed. But he couldn't find the words to tell her and he ended up being quiet.

They both sighed heavily, it had be a long day and it hadn’t finished yet, Marinette looked discreetly at Adrien, she felt her heart beat so fast, this was too much for her, but at the same time, she couldn't help but feel happy and grateful to be able to spend time with him. For his part, Adrien felt a special confidence when he was with her, that he did not have to pretend to be the perfect model, although he had to keep secrets, it did not mean that it should be all smiles and praises.

Both of them in some strange way were comfortable with how things were.

“The first thing is the book, which one do we do?" Marinette asked after coming out of her reverie. “There are several interesting titles, especially from the romantic era. I mean, it's not like I want a romance between us, or anything, I mean, it's that ... that ... romance is important ... and you are important... like pigeons...” You could hear Marinette's brain start to explode. "They are good books!"

Adrien, for the second time, started to laugh. Marinette was charming trying to convey her ideas into sentences, but it always seemed like she was going to have a stroke. Although, the strangest thing is that it only happened with him. A warm sensation passed through his chest, but he didn’t want to pay attention to it, it was not necessary.

"So, you like old romance ..." He paused, smiling like Chat Noir used to. “A tragic one?”

His friend's eyes were filled with panic upon hearing that words, as if something she hadn't considered now became evident, she tried to contain the images in her head and looked at Adrien, smiling falsely at him. She took a deep breath and pretended nothing was wrong.

“What happened?” Adrien said, his tone full of concern triggered Marinette's _everything-is-fine_ mechanism. He knew that answer too well, it was like looking himself in a mirror. Noticing that her friend fell silent, he understood almost immediately that it would has to be a complex situation, very difficult to handle. She needed space. “I understand that you don’t want to tell me, take it easy.”

Adrien's sincere smile made everything worse. He wanted to cry, he wanted to scream, but he only swallowed to pronounce the following words.

“There’s nothing to worry about, Adrien.” The serenity of his words sounded too perfect, like it was a phrase he had always had to say for perhaps how long ago. “Besides, everything will be fine, right?”

“Whatever it is ...” He placed his hand on her shoulder again. “Everything will be fine. You can count on me.”

Her eyes began to itch, he immediately turned his head away from those beautiful and kind green eyes. He was her prince, he would always remain in her heart as an impossible, something almost sacred. Somehow, that hurt, but at the same time it brought her peace.

“One of my favorite books this year was _Notre Dame de Paris_.” She paused, for a moment, she had been carried away by her own emotions and it felt like a bad thing. “Though I have to admit that I was intrigued by _Neverwhere_ , too.”

Adrien smiled tenderly, it caught his attention that he mentioned Neil Gaiman as an option for romance books, there wasn’t anything she could say to explain this.

“We have mystery and fantasy within your options, then?” Before his friend got rid of thousands of apologies, he continued speaking. “I have a guilty pleasure with Jane Austen and all her work, which reminds me that we had read _Sense and Sensibility_. We could put it on the list of what we liked the most.

Marinette was immediately put in work mode, so in order to get what could be considered a good grade, they decided to choose the book, made a summary and put the ideas they wanted in the essay. They couldn’t continue as planned, because halfway through the discussion on the topics, the young woman's parents brought snacks and drinks for the teens. These, after eating, couldn’t concentrate again and talked about the music of Jagged Stone, she smiled at being able to express how much she liked and that her music normally inspired her to be able to work, to create those pieces that she later showed with so much pride.

Adrien looked closely at his friend, there was a part of him that was very envious, she had something that he could never be able to show. Adrien was very capable to imitate and emulate whatever he had in front of him, that had led him to stardom as a model, he was a relatively good music performer, but he lacked the creative skills to be able to do something by himself.

"You are incredible, Marinette." He said to the air, only to be ashamed of his words. "I mean you can do so much, creating such good images, clothes, of whatever you decide to. You are amazingly imaginative.”

Marinette, surprised and flushed at his words, couldn't help but feel a hint of jealousy in Adrien's words, as if he felt less.

"T... thanks." Was all she could say.

Time went by calmly, exhaustion began to pass the bill, Marinette slowly fell asleep again, it could tell from her expression how exhausted she had to be. No matter what was going on, it was serious.

“Everything will be fine, princess.” He whispered slowly, letting himself be carried away by the calm and reassuring atmosphere that this house had for him.

Perhaps at night, a certain cat should pay a visit to his dear friend.

Undecided about what to do next, he started walking around the room and found something that caught his attention, by chance, he remembered, of the times he had gone astray, he had noticed that Marinette used to have many photographs of him, and the young man thought —he wanted to believe— that his friend collected it more than anything for clothing or maybe because she admired his model work. Not that he was blind, there was something intriguing in the behavior of the young Franco-Chinese, however, seeing the photos of him relegated to a corner of the room, crowded, clarified that cumbersome scene, causing an unusual discomfort in his chest.

He didn’t want to think about any anymore and called Nathalie, he hoped that it would not be an inconvenience to have to pick it up half an hour before.

He delicately loaded the young woman to his bed and awkwardly covered her with her clothes, before saying goodbye with a kiss on the forehead. That enigma called Marinette Dupain-Cheng had left him very intrigued, but with the patience that characterized him, it would give him the space he needed ... right?

[…]

It was unusual for Ladybug to be late for patrols, particularly since she was usually the first to arrive by far. Chat Noir sat on one of the highest corners of the Eiffel tower and waited. Something big should have happened if the heroine was this late, more than forty minutes and counting.

He hadn't heard from her since he had seen her as Adrien leaving her a gift in his room and was nervous. But he was sure that the delay was because her civilian life had somehow stopped her, the night was looking calm and most likely, it wouldn't be necessary for any of them to be on patrol in the first place. He smiled; the truth is that it didn't bother him to wait a little longer, just in case... although, it's not like he's not used to waiting fruitless for someone. Well, she was almost never late and there was always a good reason... like his father's. Chat Noir sighed with resignation, he knew that they were not the same person, also she always compensated him for her absences or delays, but she didn’t cover him with gifts, Ladybug just stayed with him for an additional time or ate any delicacies that she brought. In the end, those little details made him love her more, he never really felt alone, she took care of it.

His mind wandered, he began to think about her dear friend, he was really worried about Marinette, he hoped that whatever was disturbing her just turned out to be a minor annoyance, she was an incredible and strong girl. But he had a hunch that it must be serious for her if she reacted the way she did.

"Sorry for the delay, Chat ..." He heard a voice behind him that brought him back of his thoughts. "I brought you a bribe, can you forgive me?"

Her face looked tired, almost as if she had been crying. Her eyes were puffy, and she avoided direct eye contact.

“Is everything all right, Buginette?” He replied instinctively.

She smiled wistfully and looking away. She touched her arm and tried to speak, but it was all in vain. The words didn’t come from her lips.

“Shhh ...” the boy said softly, he didn’t know why but kept his distance from her. But at the end, she came closer by herself. “Whatever it is, I want you to know that you count on me.”

She nodded; her eyes filled with tears. Why did she had to feel so safe with him? Her plan had come out terrible, the idea was to keep a distance, not to be comforted by him. However, the relief of being able to cry at ease while Chat Noir hugged her brought her a reassurance that she really needed. She cherished the idea of what she had told herself while she was with Adrien, everything could take another day, everything would be fine.

"Everything will be fine, right, Chatton?" He said, his voice so low it was almost imperceptible. "Promise me that everything will be fine."

Knowing that it was a ridiculous promise, he had no other choice but to nod and reply that he promised. It was what his Lady needed to hear at the moment, and he was more than willing to give her the reassuring she needed, he would do everything for her. Whatever it took to make her happy. It broke his heart to see her in that state, but he preferred to keep quiet, they had rules that they couldn’t break, as much as he wanted to ask he could only caress his head until the pain was gone.

“Thank you.” She whispered, letting herself be carried away by the warmth of the embrace and the tranquility that only he could offer her.

The patrol carried it out in a short time, mostly because they wanted to eat, the truth is that there was nothing to worry about, the city was quiet and the police could take care of the minor crimes that took place in the city. There was something liberating about touring the city in seeking to protect it. The pain in her chest had greatly reduced and she is now much more composed, smiling.

Meeting where they had agreed upon, Ladybug carried the basket where she had brought her bribe. Chat Noir's heart was pounding as she opened the box in question, they were carried away by the food and the pleasant atmosphere. The girl seemed to have brought some cakes and sweets that he knew very well. Those of the Dupain-Cheng family. It caught his attention that the young woman with pigtails ate more hungrily than usual.

"This is why I could never be a model." He said after choking on some cupcakes and drinking some tea.

Adrien laughed, it was not the first time she had said this to him and for some reason she always seemed to complain about her physique.

"I don't know how much you're complaining about, you're very thin even though I know you're capable of eating more than a trucker." Ladybug punched him on the shoulder as he said that, but he couldn't help but laugh. "It's the truth, you always eat more than I would be able to swallow. It is what you are doing right now. Plus you're incredibly her…”

She silenced him with one of her fingers, very flushed.

"Not today, please." She said, fading slightly as she spoke those words.

He smiled back at her, though it hurt to shut up.

“Not today.” He replied, nodding.

[…]

When Marinette got to her room, having eaten to the satisfaction of his heart, and prepared to put on pajamas, she had to admit that she had been carried away by the drama. Tikki had been right and today had been a good day. She was indeed going to have to do something, to stop trying to make Adrien fall in love with her was an excellent plan, but she had to admit that the ideas she had had regarding Chat Noir were unfeasible, she needed it in her life. He was her emotional support even though she wouldn’t admit it.

The turning point she had to avoid, then, was to be his girlfriend again. Being someone intimate with Chat Noir, especially as a civilian.

This should not be so difficult. Except that a shadow in his window came to tell her exactly the opposite.

Knock, knock, knock.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This is the new chapter, as you might know I'm not an English native speaker, so my work is full of.. mistakes. Hope this chapter is good. I really enjoyed writing it.
> 
> Please take care of yourself, don't expose if it's not needed.
> 
> Hugs...


	4. Stumbling doesn't make you go back

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tikki and Plagg wish things turn out to be different, even a little. The reasons are different.

What on earth was going on? Why of all the people who could visit her, it has to be _him_? What was the problem of the destiny, always playing with her heart and feelings? She wondered while she slowly moved to open the window and let that stray cat pass.

“Good night princess.” Chat noted the tense atmosphere, the truth is that he did not know how to take the attitude of the young black-haired woman. “I think this is a bad time to come see you.”

Marinette had to pause her storm of questions and answers that were starting to drive her crazy. He was leaving and for some reason she couldn't help but take his hand, she wanted so badly to ask him to stay.

“I could use some company, but I'm a little tired today.” She replied, she wasn't kicking him out, but she wasn't directly allowing him to stay either. "I don't know what to do."

He startled hearing that tone of voice, those words. There was a sense of familiarity that was making noise in his head, but he couldn't help but notice her friend's confusion.

"So, you don’t mind if I come here tomorrow?" He asked, he wanted to see her, and he knew that she’d be off guard, instead of how she was with _Adrien_. It somehow felt natural and correct. "I’ll understand if you have something to do."

"Actually, I like the plan." She said with a smile. "I really like the plan. See you tomorrow, I'll be waiting for you.”

For some reason, that smile, made him nervous. He left the room saying goodbye quickly, he wanted her to rest well, he knew she needed it. After a few minutes of complete silence, Marinette watched Tikki approaching her with a sly smile, she couldn't help but laugh at the situation.

"This is most strange, Tikki." She sighed, as she went to bed. "I don't need you to make fun of me, it's what I least want at the moment."

“All I'm going to say is I'm glad you're not alone. Although they do not know what is going on in your head.”

[...]

Adrien spun like a locked tiger, he didn’t get what was going on in his head, even less on his heart. Everything seemed fuzzy, chaotic. He couldn’t fit everything that was going on, he couldn’t stop feeling a hunch that made him feel uncomfortable somehow. Ladybug and Marinette were facing a situation, both were reacting similarly to adversity, he recognized that way of looking at the ground and pretending that everything was fine, that way of indicating that they didn’t want any questions, that only their presence was enough. Ladybug seemed more willing to tell him what was going on, but it wasn't like she felt comfortable doing it, either. They both needed Chat Noir, although in different ways.

"This is curious, really curious ..." he said with a hint of insight that Plagg was unable to let go.

He didn't think it was a good idea, right now, that Adrien knew about Ladybug's identity, mainly because she knew him well enough to fear a reckless, absurd, gooey reaction, but as long as he was under Gabriel Agreste's protection Plagg doubted he could be truly happy. That man was anything but a father, the only thing that seemed to matter to him was the image of the company that his son represented. What would he think if it was that a normal girl, such as Ladybug, was dating him, a star? It was not that he did not like the idea that he was in love with the blue-haired girl, after all, he did not believe that there was a more suitable girl to be with his sugar cube and it was evident that those two souls were destined to meet , to fall in love ... the problem was time. Now was not the right time and he would do his best to make his boy happy.

The best thing was making him stop and hope that fate would be gentler with them. They deserved it.

“Nothing is curious or anything. Don't talk nonsense and go to sleep.” Plagg's voice sounded more concerned than annoyed at saying those words, but Adrien couldn't help but frown at him. "Don't make that face, I already saw you. Tomorrow you have school and you need to rest.”

Plagg was not usually someone who was careful about what was happening to him, but truth be told, this somehow felt good. It was strange but nice. He sighed heavily and put on pajamas. It had been a long day, full of mysteries and intense emotions. However, the confidence of the girl who drove him crazy gave him a beautiful feeling in his heart. He looked at his cell phone in case any notification appeared there and realized an unpleasant detail, it was already more than 2 AM... Tomorrow would be a difficult day.

[...]

She had fallen asleep almost as soon as her head touched the pillow, however, her dreams were far from sweet, the nightmares tormented her endlessly, in all of them she returned again and again to see that blue-eyed cat trying to kill her , chasing after her, accusing her of having caused everything they were both living to finally come face to face with him, her gaze full of sadness as if she begged him to save him. That was the worst, she always woke up bathed on cold sweat, breathing fast, trying not to scream out of the panic she felt, only to go back to sleep and see him again. How many times could her heart break?

After the second time, Tikki woke up next to her holder, she caressed Marinette’s hair so she could sleep better, but even so, nothing seemed to calm her. Marinette continued sleeping and waking up disconsolate from her bad dreams. After trying to rest properly on vain, she burst into tears of frustration and hopelessness, feeling so guilty about what had happened. Part of her claimed it wasn't her fault, as if someone had told her, but... did that matter anymore? After all, she had the responsibility of avoiding that future.

 _What a mess you got in, Marinette._ He couldn't help but think, challenging himself for his attitude the day before. _They cannot continue to get involved with me, whatever has happened along that line ... I am the only cause_."

The tears were full of pain, remorse and sadness and didn’t stop running on her face, with such force that she cried that ended up falling asleep without a nightmare appearing on her head. Tikki watched with enormous pain the situation, she felt tied hands in front of everything she had seen. She was sure that she did not deserve any of the consequences that were tormenting her, she gave Marinette a little kiss while she was already sleeping with some tranquility. She looked up at the moon wishing with all his might that this was just a little stumble, that it was nothing terrible. Because stumbling doesn’t make you regress, they just help you learn.

Her duty as guardian of balance, deity of creation, prevented her from taking action, she was only an observer of the catastrophes of the world, she was the only one who had to keep magic away from others who were not the chosen, nothing more.

"You are so strong, Marinette." Her words were loaded with pride and at the same time with much pain.

[...]

He got up early, a little longer than usual. He had successfully bribed Gorilla to take an additional passenger before arriving at school. Although she lived very close to the school, she knew that Marinette would need a hand from someone to fetch her.

At least, that tactic used to work to Alya.

"I don't know what your fixation is with being with your girlfriend, boy." Plagg said, annoyed at having to get up early. He emphasized the chosen words, knowing that that would make Adrien defensive.

Adrien blushed for some reason after hearing those words.

“Plagg! She—! You know she is not my girlfriend!” He didn't know the reason why he had been so agitated. "I just don't want her to be late. I do not know why you are so excited that we are together, from the beginning I always—”

There was no girl in the whole school that he teased him about, that shouldn't be a sign that... he was probably over-thinking things. Plagg was not a being with many reasons to act in a certain way and he especially enjoyed teasing him. He finished preparing things so he could go to have breakfast alone, it was not something he liked very much, but that's how things worked in his house for so long. He had already forgotten.

Nathalie was waiting him outside the room, her imperturbable expression amused him. In one way or another, he had always known that she was one of the people who cared the most about his well-being in that huge mansion, a stab hitting his chest at the thought of that. He was not very happy to remember that his only relative who was alive used to ignore him for continuing to work or meditate on the disappearance of his mother.

“Adrien, remember that you don't have any activities today and you will have to bring young Dupain-Cheng to continue with your school project.” The woman's words made Adrien uncomfortable. "Don't look at me like that, it's what you agreed with your father."

He didn’t like the idea very much, even though there wasn’t any other option, he calmly went down to the dining room to have his breakfast and visit Marinette. She envied the family environment of that young woman, her father was an incredible person, very kind and with an attitude that made her enter into trust with great ease, the mother, for her part, was an attentive woman who used to anticipate the needs of In addition, it was noted that from there Marinette must have inherited that special character.

"Don’t worry, kiddo. This’s gonna end soon." he said to himself as he stirred his coffee and looked at his phone.

He activated his social networks, which he used to do sacredly every morning to respond to some fans and pretend that he really cared about them. More than 500 comments in the last photo that his manager had posted on social networks the night before. Some people believed that fame made people happy, that it made them feel important, or that it gave them what they had always dreamed of. Unfortunately for Adrien, fame had only succeeded in making him feel more miserable, insignificant, and unhappy.

"Cheer up, boy." Plagg said from the boy's pocket. "The least thing we want now is for you to get depressed and end up akumatized."

Plagg had a point, closed his account and finished eating as soon as possible. I wanted to see Marinette for some reason.

[...]

Alya had preferred to maintain a certain level of distance while her best friend had decided to keep quiet in front of whatever was making her miserable, it wasn’t that she enjoyed it, but pressuring her best friend rarely accomplished anything. Marinette used to make more mistakes and she got sad at the end of the day. She was really worried, the ravennette hadn’t even called her to explain, that was not the usual for her behavior. She bit her lip as ahe made his way to his meeting point with Nino in front of the school.

"Stop thinking about it, babe." Her boyfriend's voice brought her out of her reverie. "It looks like you have a gray cloud flying over your head." Alya immediately looked at him with a frown. "She's counting on you, but there are days when it's best to keep quiet and wait. As I usually do with you.”

She couldn’t resist and smiled, Nino used to be a patient person, someone who always supported her and kept her from ending up jumping out the window when chasing any news. She was surprised at how good a match they both were. While she was fearless and intelligent; he was more restrained and focused.

"You are right, Nino. She is also with Adrien, possibly she could not have with the happiness of all this.” Alya replied.

There was a growl behind them, and they could see Lila walking towards the stairs of the building.

"Everything okay, Lila?" Alya's concern was genuine.

The Italian teen smiled with her eyes closed and told them that she had only hit her foot when she was going up, she complained slightly of pain from her supposed arthritis and then left as fast as she could. Although the brunettes wanted to help her, but she told them not to worry since she had to get to the classroom in the same way. For some reason, Nino noticed that she seemed upset or perhaps angry about something. However, Alya's voice brought him to planet earth and focused only on her, as always.

"I think we should go in; they will come." Said the brunette with the satisfaction that everything should go better.

Even if she had a feeling that everything would be the other way around.

[...]

“Marinette! Please wake up!” The girl continued in a deep sleep from which it seemed that she was not going to wake up. Tikki decided to yell in his ear. "Adrien is coming!"

The girl was startled to hear that and ran to the bathroom, she was still half asleep while bathing and choosing clothes. At least she was well put on, and even though it wasn't the usual combination, she had put on a beautiful black t-shirt that looked adorable with the pale pink short overall. For some reason, she was comfortable with the idea of wearing black sneakers and comb her hair, she preferred a bun instead of her typical pigtails. Tikki had never understood how she could be able to put on everything even if she was sleepy, but even so, even awake, she was capable of making a mess of almost anything.

However, when Sabine went upstairs to look for her little girl, she was glad to see her almost ready.

“Marinette, Adrien has come looking for you to go to school.” She said, thinking of the joy that would be seen on her daughter's face when she heard her say that, but what she saw caught her attention, it wasn’t normal. “Everything's okay, honey?”

Marinette smiled immediately, she had to preserve the mask that everything was fine if she planned to stop asking her questions, to let her take the necessary measures. Her dreams felt like a prophecy and she would do whatever it took to keep it from coming true.

"It's nothing, mom." She said naturally, she really hated having to lie, but it was necessary—as always. “I’m nervous, I didn't think he would come to see me.”

Sabine smiled, her daughter was very emotionally intense, she had inherited it from her husband, and it was one of those things that she considered almost natural from her. As long as she was happy, as long as her heart remained intact, she was going to let her be. She watched as her daughter finished preparing her things and went down to pick up her breakfast, Sabine imagined that she’d eat at school.

“Have a very good day, my dear. I love you.” She said as she watched her girl go down the stairs. She would have liked to go downstairs to leave her with Adrien, but she knew how much Marinette would be complicated.

Her girl was already big, and she had to let her be.

Marinette quickly went downstairs from her house so she could meet her father and say goodbye before going to school. He gave her a hug, one that put most of her energy back together. She wasn't going to let this win over her, she would take whatever safeguards were necessary, but that didn't mean to stop being friends with Adrien, just keep a safe distance.

She opened the door and saw him smiling, her spirits slowly unraveling, it seemed that all that remained was to pretend until this stopped hurting.

Right?


	5. The limits of Imagination

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> As always, if you have a difficult situation, life CAN get harder. Always.

Marinette felt like fainting, she didn’t understand why everything had to backfire. Nothing had sense anymore and she was sure destiny hated her. Marinette wasn’t a religious person, but she had to confess in moments like this she had paying some kind of karmic debt of a passed life. Her mother was Buddhist, even though she didn’t practice it, the values of that religion had stamped in her life as the color of her eyes or skin tone, this was her way of living. Sabine passed to her daughter without even notice. Marinette firmly believed in Karma; she couldn’t help it. She faded a half smile.

“A-Adrien… good morning.” Her voice was shaking, she felt so uncomfortable, whereas a part of her treasured this moment, that nice feeling. He was picking her up to school.

“I hope you could rest.” He didn’t know why he was commenting something that obvious.

Marinette’s mother came out seeing both teens wasn’t moving to school. Time kept running.

“Kids, if you don’t hurry up, you’ll be late. Later you can catch up.” She wasn’t angry, Sabine tone was smooth and caring, both teens hurried up to school, of course after saying good-bye.

Adrien automatically took Marinette hand so they could arrive faster, just before the bell rang. She didn’t pay attention to this, focused on getting there as soon as possible. They ran and ran; the teacher wasn’t there yet. As they entered everyone had their eyes put on them. Marinette took away her hand, her face was so red.

Something clicked in Adrien’s mind at that moment.

Adrien and Marinette took their seats and put their materials in the table while Mme. Bustier came in the classroom. The girl was so embarrassed, she could hear them gossiping, even her ears were burning. Adrien was lost on his thoughts, he knew that way of running, that reaction and that speed. But he couldn’t handle the truth, it was easier. He needed strong evidence to firm his hypothesis, the best thing he could do was being quiet. She seemed more accustomed to him, trusting him more and he couldn’t help but feel happy about it.

Both thanked the teacher for being there and focus on something else.

“Good morning, student, get to work. You only have 2 weeks to deliver the essay.” Mme. Bustier said hoping her pupils got on it immediately. “You can go to the library and get additional resources and speak in pairs, but you have to focus on your work.”

Both teens took the book and agreed the library was the perfect spot to get that essay done. It was so large they could comfortably write and check out their ideas.

Well, that was the plan.

Outside, hell was unleashed. Marinette bit her lips for the tension, they decided to get to the exit unconsciously, after realizing both panicked not knowing how to distract and transform without being discovered. They seemed in sync, everyone else was hiding but them. It took a few seconds to notice the havoc was getting bigger in the playground, they needed to take care of this situation now, they had to figured out how, but they knew they’ll be able. They chose one of the corners and hid, that was the smartest thing right now.

“I’m going to check up the others.” Said Marinette, leaving Adrien. “I’ll be right back.”

He wanted to refuse, but this was perfect, he’ll be able to transform and save the day. He questioned himself if that was a good idea. But he nodded and let her go, after thinking about it a few second. He didn’t have time to waste, later he could overthink all that doubts that overwhelm him. Now he had to be the superhero, save the new victim of _Papillon_.

Today was gonna be a long day.

Meanwhile, Marinette run as fast as her could outside the library to the next bathroom, she needed to transform now. The students were terrified trying to hide wherever they could, the best option was to hide in the janitor room.

The villain called herself _Cookie Monster_ , a girl humiliated by her classmates when they saw she had a Sesame’s Street undies. Her ability was transforming anyone into a cookie and then eat it hungrily. She was tall, purple skin, yellow hair and was wearing a blue haired overall. Her voice squeaky was strident. Cookie Monster was a real threat to herself and had to be stopped.

“M’lady, it’s a shame we only see each other when duty calls.” His tone was so dramatic, even to himself was too much. He put his hand on his face just to go accord to the phrase. “Hey! Don’t laugh.”

“You are so funny, but we’ll be able to discuss that later, when we had solved this… delicious issue.” Her tone was playful, soft, even though it was a bit distant than usual. Awkward.

Ladybug and Chat Noir landed with grace and git ready to fight. People around them relaxed when they arrived, then, in a case of complete stupidity, started to cheer them up. _Cookie Monster_ got more cookies.

“It doesn’t matter what you do, in the end I’ll eat you.” The akumatized said, the butterfly symbol appeared in her face. She was listening her master’s order. “First I have to get your Miraculous and then I’ll eat you!”

Ladybug seemed concerned.

“You shouldn’t eat your problems, literally.” Her voice was concealing, soft, calm. As if Ladybug knew what she was talking about.

Cookie look at her filled with doubts.

“You _don’t_ know what you are talking about” She throw a ray of her hands. “So, Shut UP!”

The Butterfly appeared again, she looked down, _Papillon was furious._ He called her irresponsible and warned her if she wasn’t more careful, he’ll take her powers away. She had to give him those jewels. The scared girl nodded, her body was tensed and prepared to attack the heroes physically. They dodged easily but got worried of how erratic where her moves, they could feel her despair. Ladybug need to do something, to get rid of that butterfly.

“Lucky charm!” she hurried; her nervousness was evident. It was almost like she didn’t want to be there.

Ladybug got a ribbon and unlike other lucky charm, she knew what she had to do, the akuma attacked and heroine dodged again, in that moment jump over her tying her hands as a gift. Ladybug gave them to Chat Noir so he could destroy the cursed object, a Sesame’s Street bracelet.

“Thank you so much, M’lady. You didn’t have to.” His voice was silly and joyful. “It’s not even my birthday.”

She giggled, he always made her laugh, one way or another.

“Today we’re celebrating your Non-birthday.” She replied playfully.

Her spirit returned.

Chat used his Cataclysm on that accessory and the butterfly tried to escape. Ladybug do her thing, and everything got back to normal, even the devoured people was like new. Everyone cheered them again, it had been a short battle. She had to bug out letting the victim in Chat Noir’s hands, he understood immediately what had happened, at least the important things.

“What had I done?” the girl whispered terrified looking everyone surrounding her, before start crying. “It’s gonna get worse.”

Chat Noir approached caring, he had a few minutes left, he looked directly to her and smiled.

“Don’t worry, I’m sure they are going to get it.” He sounded a bit more grown up, as it was something Ladybug would say. “If not, then you have to look for better friends, that’s all.”

After that, he took her to school and then run to de-transform. Got back to the library and found Marinette hunkered, she looked like she was crying. Adrien approached closer carefully, he didn’t want to scare her. It hurt watching her like that, he didn’t understand what was going on, why she seemed filled with anguish, even if that could be attribute to the akuma attack easily.

However, he had never watched Marinette really stressed about that in the whole time he’d knew her. She said she was a coward more than once, but more than once she was guiding the group, helping them to get out of the havoc, just like a good leader would do… or someone else. No, it didn’t matter, he felt the need to console her, to calm her. Even if he wasn’t sure how this was going to came out.

“Marinette are you ok?” his usual response would be touching her shoulder, but he couldn’t, he needed to respect her space. “Everything is fine, Ladybug and Chat Noir defeated Papillon’s Minion. Everything is ok.

She shook her head, squeezed her arms digging her nails in her skin, it was like she was forcing her to calm down. Marinette was freaking out, whereas she had to stay calm. He hadn’t come back. Chat Noir was all right, then why everything felt so wrong? After all, the world was in one piece. Adrien decided to do what Gorilla did every time they were together and there was a storm. He hugged her. Maybe his bodyguard wasn’t a guy of many words, but at least he knew how to comfort someone. That action was well received by the ravennette, so he took the initiative and caressed her hair, with that Marinette stopped crying and recovered her composure, she was surprised that was him who was taking care of her. She felt pathetic, useless, weak, hopeless. Marinette took deep breath and cleaned her tears, there was no exit, he would ask and she didn’t know how to fic that.

That day couldn’t get worse?!

“Thanks, Adrien.” Her voice was shaky, she could still feel the sadness inside her.

He smiled heartily at her recovery, even if she still looked scared. His smile was brighter than usual.

“It’s over don’t worry. The akuma was defeated, everything is fine.” Those words seemed to be effective and calmed her. “Let’s continuous with our project, I doubt the principal is going to suspend the classes now everything is under control.”

She smiled, more relaxed she realized that Adrien believed she was afraid of that villain, he wasn’t going to ask anything. That was a huge relief. If it were Alya, she would have to tell till the last detail, she really lover her, Alya was her best friend, but she didn’t know when stop a be quiet. She wasn’t good respecting boundaries. And that was awkward.

“Yes, thanks Adrien. It’s the best option. Mm. Bustier is going to ask what we had done and it’s going to be funny tell her: _Nothing_.” She giggled after saying that. She got up with him, there was an essay to finish.

Both were searching for their belongings; everything was where it should be. Then they had to pretend everything was fine, it was for the better. They took seat and picked up the sources they were going to use to the investigation.

“Where were we?” Adrien asked while checked his notes. “Ah, hum… “

Marinette felt disconnected for a moment, she wasn’t able to listen what Adrien was saying. She was disoriented. He was so sweet with her and she didn’t deserve it. Marinette bit her lips unconsciously, she needed a breather, wash her face and being herself again. She owed him that. She apologized and moved her things, exposing her sketch book, she went to the bathroom.

“You should peek a bit, don’t you think kid?” Plagg run away of his pocket and started to look Marinette’s stuff, he hoped to find something delicious in her bag.

“Plagg stop!” he tried to keep himself as quiet as possible, but Plagg was an expert driving him crazy. “That are her stuffs, you can’t do that. Agh, for God sake, they are gonna find you someday and it’s gonna be my end as Chat Noir…

Struggling with his kwami the sketch book fell and opened showing that beret design. The one Ladybug had given to him a few days ago, his heart started to beat faster while his head reviewed every chance he thought he had found the spotted heroine’s identity. A big smile appeared in his face, he had found her.

“My Sugar Cube is gonna be soooo mad…” the little kitty muttered, he recognized that expression in Adrien’s face.

He knew, Marinette and Ladybug were the same person. She was suffering for something and the only thing he wanted the most was to ease that pain.

_The hands of the clock began to advance again._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's so hard to write when this is not you first language... I hope this chapter gets a bit better, but I can't promise nothing. :C
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos, feel free to comment if you like.
> 
> I love you guys, thanks <3


	6. Wheel of destiny

Marinette washed her face eagerly, she needed to get out that rough situation, stop loving him as she had promised not so _long ago_. It couldn’t be that hard. Was she weak of spirit? Maybe the best it’d be to visit Master Fu and ask for help, it was highly probable he would know what to do, something to help her let go.

“Don’t be so hard on yourself.” A sweet voice was behind her. “It has to be difficult being so near to such a wonderful boy who’s incapable to see how you feel for him.” Marinette turned after noticing it was Lila, her voice became sadder and filled with irony. “Maybe that’s because you aren’t good enough… but you can always be his dearest friend…”

Lila giggled, she was really enjoying this whole situation, she couldn’t help it.

“Thanks, Lila, you have cheered me up with your words. At least, I _am_ his friend. You can’t even say that.” The ravennette replied with a smirk. Marinette didn’t enjoy behaving like her, but she wasn’t interested in whatever Lila wanted right now. Her thoughts were more than enough.

Lila was furious after hearing that words, that impertinent brat would pay for that. For now, Marinette could enjoy Adrien’s presence as much as she wanted, he would be hers, when the times came.

Marinette went out the bathroom, she didn’t want to lose control of things neither herself, plus, she had a project to finish. Lila stood inside, thinking. Marinette hated losing composure, getting mad with that liar. She always had to say something, she was just like Lila.

“I’m better than this…” she said disgusted of herself, while walked to the library.

She could feel Tikki moving inside her purse, as asking her not being so harsh on herself, but Marinette couldn’t help it, she was Ladybug after all, she had to keep the standards people was expecting of her.

Or what she thought they expected of her.

She took a deep breath and put her _everything-is-fine_ face. She opened the door and walked towards Adrien was waiting for her. The boy seemed flushed and his smile had softened. There was something disturbingly charming about how Adrien was looking at Marinette that made her incredibly uncomfortable.

“Well, where did we leave it..?” Marinette asked softly, her voice repeated in Adrien’s head, un two, a thousand times. “Adrien, are you ok?”

A silly smile appeared in his face, he didn’t know how to respond, even though it wasn’t that hard.

“It’s fine, don’t worry.” He shaken up a little bit, he had to focus. “We had decided you’ll do a summary and I’ll check the bibliography to back up all our work.”

As always, Adrien’s ability to replay correctly even when he was distracted avoided him to look like an idiot in front of the most important woman in his life, apart from his mother, of course. He knew he had a lot to do, so Marinette could fell in love with him, even if he wasn’t how to do so. She always freaked out when he tried to talk to her.

But he would do it.

[…]

“What the heck?!” there was a genuine surprise in her voice, she felt like fainting. “Minibug… what had happened?”

Bunix watched how the timeline shifted again, the events somehow repeated, and destiny seemed fixated on getting everything back. There were some changes, little ones, but he kissed her again, told his feelings, and, ­even when Marinette resisted a lot, they started dating and the destiny began once more. Bunix sighed heavily, she didn’t know what to think, it seemed the changes they had made weren’t enough, poor Marinette, it looked like she had to been through this again.

And it wasn’t like she deserved it.

“The best I can do is look for her. This can’t wait.”

She could feel on her back —just before she entered in the rabbit hole— how that presence was laughing at her. She could handle that later. She had to find a way to _fix_ this Chat Blanc Incident now, find the way that the timeline was she knew. With Ladybug and Chat Noir fighting against that person, that _new_ Papillon.

Looked her watch, it had happened one or two days after that first incident, she didn’t want Marinette overwhelmed with the fact she had to deal with Chat Blanc again, but she could afford the luxury of waiting too much. This was perfect.

The night arrived a few hours ago, she appeared in Marinette’s room knowing she’ll be here in 2 minutes and 13 seconds, after she had dinner with her parents and had finished her homework. Marinette should be so tired, for what she saw preciously, Bunix bit her thumb annoyed, she didn’t want to be here, letting her take care of this mess again, but as Bunix she could meddle in the timeline directly, whereas, that didn’t mean she couldn’t bring someone to handle it.

At the end, Marinette was the perfect Ladybug.

“Hello, Minibug”

[…]

_Un petit chat sur un toit, se languit sans sa Lady…_

No, it wasn’t true, _it couldn’t be_ , she had taken care of this, but there he was sitting on the roof of that building, his body seemed carrying the weight of pain, loneliness, sadness, one she knew she was guilty of, even if she wasn’t sure why she was. She felt choked up, her heart was beating fast, her stomach hurt, she wanted to cry right in that moment.

The cat boy heard those footsteps, he knew them, that scent, the perfect mix of rose, lavender and strawberries, it was her? It had to. He turned abruptly and saw her, she was distraught, but there she was, his Lady, his princess, the only thing it could bring sense to his life and that had been so cruelly taken away from him… by that bastard.

“M’lady, is that you?” he needed to get close, feel her in his arms, kiss her. "I thought I had lost you forever!”

They weren’t the same words, but he could still get closer to her, she was in shock, not understanding how thing had turned that way.

“Chat Blanc…” only saying it she was heartbroken. “But I… I thought it had been enough…” her voice was muttering till silence, as a whisper, filled with so many emotions.

She had failed him again…

“But now you are here…” his voice was filled with joy. Chat Blanc was so fast, she didn’t notice his approach. “We can fix it… If only…!”

Tears ran from her bluebell eyes, her thin body was embraced by Chat Blanc’s arms, she had hurt him and here she was, being consoled by him. In which type of person had she become? Probably, someone so selfish, weak, and useless.

“Chat Blanc, I have to find out where the akuma is, it’s the only way I can free you from the claws of that despicable man.” She said while rested her head on his chest, she could hear the beating of his heart rising. “Please, let me help you. I owe you this.”

How long had this boy hadn’t received any kind of affection? He had forgotten, but he needed that intimacy, his hug relaxed, she put her hand on his face, both teens were crying silently.

“Save me.” He said.

She couldn’t waste more time, there wasn’t more tear for her, neither time for bullshit like her feelings, the only thing that mattered was him, his wellbeing, recovering the things he had lost. Because of her.

“Forgive me.” Ladybug said, looking at him, reassured. With energies she felt vanished.

In that instant she felt his lips, they were colder than she had thought. She wasn’t expecting him to kiss her forehead so affectionately, she couldn’t help but blush.

“You are here now, the only thing I need is your…” God! His eyes were filled with madness again. “MIRACULOUS!”

She broke free from his arms, pulled her hand softly and took the bell, she remembered there was where the butterfly was hidden the last time. It has to be there, she was sure. He began to attack her, he appeared scared of using his abilities, like he feared killing her in the process. Ladybug broke the bell in vain, so she had to run.

“The only thing you are doing now is breaking my heart, Marinette.”

Those words frozen her for a moment, she was sure she hadn’t done the same mistake, but someway he had figured out her identity, and then… had she rejected him this time? Ladybug wasn’t sure of anything anymore, except a little detail, she had to find a way to come back and fix everything. She tripped while landing, and she was sure she had twisted her ankle, Tikki’s magic made it painless.

Not like seeing him now, immersed in despair.

“You shouldn’t know it.”

Chat Blanc smiled as he walked slowly to her, his elegant manners were back, that slowly almost pretentious way of walking, her heart was beating so fast. She looked for an exit. She had to get away from there now, the atmosphere was suffocating her.

“That never was an issue. If I only had knew. If I had protected you.” His voice was filled of… ¿regret? “But then I understood why _he_ wanted our miraculous so much, you must know by now, if you merge them …”

“You’ll be granted one wish and you’ll fix everything…” she whispered, repeating that phrase she had already heard. “So, we can be in love again.”

Chat Blanc creepily smiled at her, he nodded. It was like she got it. But then, why was she resisting to the right thing?

“If you know it, why don’t you let me to get everything back to normal?” It was obvious he was getting angrier, she had to be careful to resolve this horrendous situation. “Your Lucky Charm won’t fix the things that happened that day, I hope you get it.” He paused, a giggle escaped from his lips, before he started to run. “No, you don’t get it!”

She reacted just in time and dodge him, she took his staff and tried to break it, she had missed it again. But that wouldn’t mean any of them would admit defeat.

“It was our love what caused all of this.” His deep voice almost sound like he was blaming her. “If only you had trusted me, told me.” His eyes were filled with tears once again, the guilt appeared on his face once again. “I’ve never been enough…” he took a deep breath. “It doesn’t matter anymore, you don’t love me, life has no sense.”

Ladybug knew what’s going to be next, Chat Blanc would threaten her to destroy the world. She could feel her knees weaken while she tried to figure out how to get close and free him from that damn butterfly once for all.

“I can’t kill myself; it doesn’t matter how many times I tried to waste my nine lives, nothing can kill me, taking the ring off won’t help either.” It was that same boy, but at the same time he wasn’t. “You don’t want me to make the wish, so, the only thing I can do is killing you and then my wish will be granted.”

Her blood ran cold, Chat Blanc threw her little energy balls which he knew will disintegrate everything they would touch, adrenaline took over her, she needed to be in control again, to stop him. Chat Noir was always predictable, but his akumatized counterpart had something new, she didn’t know which was going to be his next movement.

“Chat _Noir_.” She cried trying to ambush him. “Lucky Charm.”

A lipstick, that was she got, she froze. What was that object wanted to tell her? He surprised her, grabbing her from the front, but that told her what to do.

“Just let me fix everything, so we can be in love again. So, you can love me again.” His voice was piercing his ears again. “And I’m not Chat _Noir_ , I’m Chat _Blanc_.”

And the she kissed him on his lips while she took his belt, she wasn’t sure why, but there she was, savoring those lips that somehow tasted like something _forbidden_.

“Not matter what, you will always be my dearest Chat Noir to me. Not matter how much you try to deny it.” She broke the object and the cursed butterfly fled from her hide out, freeing him in the process. “It’s time to de-evilize, gotcha, bye-bye little butterfly.”

She felt to relieved hugging him and noticing how his suit became black again, that tone so relaxing to her. It appeared his blonde hair that she was ruffling softly while he opened his sparkly green eyes filled with confusion.

“I… what did I do?” his stammering voice was getting lower while he looked his surroundings. His face was filled of terror, he had little memories of what had happened, but then everything turned _blanc._

She smiled at him, she was glad he had come back to normal, even though her face was sad, now it was Ladybug who was filled with regret.

“At the end, the only thing I do is make you suffer.” Ladybug said, her chest ached, she bit her lip before entering to the rabbit hole, she needed to go back home and fix everything she had messed up.

He took her hand just before she left.

“Then, you haven’t understood anything…” Chat Noir said, his loving eyes made her heart broke a little more.

He let her go, knowing she would fix all that mess he had made.

Once Ladybug was with Bunix, the spotted heroine tried to remember what could had provoked this _Chat Blanc anomaly_. Everything was so confusing. Marinette wanted to cry; her power would banish if she didn’t get it on time.

“This morning you shouldn’t have taken you sketch book with you, that sketch book.” Bunix said, her solemn tone contrasted with the shame doing this to Ladybug provoked her.

Marinette didn’t deserve this, but this was the only way she knew that akuma wouldn’t appear. Bunix needed to stop the end of France. The ravennette nodded ashamed and waited Bunix opened a portal so she could hide her sketch book while she was taking a bath and then fixed everything with her miracle cure.

Ladybug disappeared as the ladybugs resolved the _future_.

_However, ignorance wouldn’t always save them from the inevitable._


End file.
